Adventures at Summer Camp
by Data Girl 3
Summary: The Boho Kids are heading off for summer camp. When they're there, not only do they meet a new friend, but Rodolfo soon gets his heart set on leaving his mark at the camp, the way his father, Roger, did twenty-six years ago.
1. Summer Planning

**AN: **Thanks to LifeIsTooQuick for pointing out the typo error in this chapter, in which I accidentally typed 'Penny' instead of 'Lucia'. The error has been fixed, and I hope my brain won't malfunction like that again.

* * *

Inside the Condo, three duffel bags were positioned side-by-side on the floor, one red, one blue, and the third with a pattern of colorful flowers printed on it. Rodolfo, Zack and Lucia were in the process of getting ready to spend the next four weeks at Adirondack Camp, a summer camp located near the tip of Lake George, along with Rodolfo and Zack's friend, Alvin. At the moment, however, the three of them were taking a break from packing to go over things for the fifteenth time with Mark and Emily. Maureen was also over to help out a bit, although Rodolfo had whispered to Zack his belief that Maureen was only over because Joanne was working all day, and she was bored in their empty apartment.

"Now, I want the three of you to remember to bring bug spray to keep from getting mosquito bites," Emily instructed the children. "And be sure to watch out for poison ivy, and while I know you won't be sharing a cabin with her, I want you boys to keep an eye on Lucia whenever you can."

"Mom, you've told us that same speech a dozen times," Zack pointed out, pushing his glasses further up the bridge of his nose.

"Yeah, but I'm your mother. I have that right," Emily replied. "And since you've called my attention to you, Zack, I'm also going to remind you that your father and I already notified the camp about your peanut allergy. But all the same, it wouldn't hurt to remind them once you arrive."

"Emily, please stop worrying," Mark chucked, sending her a gentle smile. "They'll be fine. Last I checked the death count at Adirondack Camp is very small."

"Oh dear," Emily sighed, covering half her face with a hand with a weak laugh. "I'm becoming one of those worrywart mothers, aren't I? Even after how much I complained about Nana always treating me like I was five-years-old. I can only_ imagine_ how much Collins would tease me about that if he was here now." Within moments, both she and Mark were suppressing a laugh at the thought.

"Wow, this brings back so many memories," Maureen suddenly spoke up from her seat on the couch, where she was flipping through the pages that had been printed off the camp's web-page. "I remember when we went there when _we_ were teens."

"You went to Adirondack Camp, too, Auntie Maureen?" Lucia asked, interested.

"Well, sure!" Maureen grinned. "That's where I met your daddy and Uncle Roger for the first time."

"Dad went there?" Rodolfo had been throwing in some last-minute items into his red duffel bag, but he looked up at the mention of his father.

"Yes, he did," Mark confirmed. "He and I spent four weeks up there ourselves when we were your age. I gotta say, it took almost two months for me to convince my parents to let me go there with Roger. They were pretty set on sending me to this Jewish camp, Camp Lakeland, like they did with Cindy." For a brief moment, Mark smiled at the memory of the summer he'd spent at the camp with Roger.

"So, what's the plan for tomorrow?" Maureen asked Mark and Emily.

"Benny's gonna be stopping by later to drop off Alvin, who will spend the night here," Emily explained. "In the morning, we'll be taking them down to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where the bus will pick them up at nine to drive them up to the camp."

"And what are you guys planning to do there?" Maureen turned her attention over to the children.

"There is this one thing that was listed under the Special Adventures on the website, called 'Caving at Crane Mountain'," Zack began. "Rodolfo, Alvin and I all wanted to give that a try. There's also rock climbing, and a whole lotta other stuff we wanted to try out.

"And I wanna go canoing, and make masks, and necklaces with hemp!" Lucia threw in her intended activities. "And I think I saw something about learning how to use stilts!"

As Zack and Lucia continued talking with Maureen about what they were looking forward to at camp and Emily started to look into what she should serve for the 'good luck at camp' dinner, Mark happened to glance over at Rodolfo, who was standing quietly in front of the wall-mounted shelf that was always filled with photographs of Roger and Mimi.

"Rodolfo?" Mark spoke gently as he stepped up to his side. "Are you okay?" It took a moment before Rodolfo tore his eyes away from one particular photograph, which featured Roger and Mark as fifteen-year-old boys, sitting side-by-side in front of the old blue bike Mark still owned. Both boys were grinning at the person who had taken the picture, and even back then, Roger's grin was unable to hide his mischievous, self-proclaimed 'tough guy' nature.

"Yeah," Rodolfo nodded when he finally looked away from the picture. "Yeah, Uncle Mark. I'm fine." Mark didn't seem to be all that convinced, but he didn't say anything more about it. Rodolfo gave one last glance at the old picture before joining his 'cousins' over by the couch, unable to stop thinking about how he was going to the same summer camp his father had gone to at his age.

* * *

**AN: **Gaaa, you have no idea how much trouble I had in deciding what Roger and Mark would be doing in the picture Rodolfo looks at. I was going to have them in a homemade fort or something,but then I was like "wait,do fifteen-year-old boys even play 'fort'?" I did multiple Google searches to figure out what typical teen boys would normally do, since it's been a while since I've been that age, but I kept getting totally useless things, like news articles involving some delinquent teens and whatnot. (At one point, I actually I got a link for some photo gallery of nude teen boys! Ack! Total nightmare!)

Anyway, Adirondack Camp is a real summer camp. I seriously recommend checking out their web-page; it looks like a really cool summer camp: Makes me wish I was still in the 7-16 age range, so I could go there myself.


	2. Arriving at Camp

About a half an hour before nine AM, Mark and Emily dropped Lucia and the boys outside the museum. Already, there was a fairly sizable group of children of various ages waiting to board the bus.

"Wow," Alvin chucked glancing around at the crowd. "I know this is a big city and all, but you never know how big it is until you see so many kids you've never met."

"Alright you three," Emily began, hugging Zack, Rodolfo, and Lucia in turn. "I know you're tired of hearing me nag, but remember to listen to the counselors, and don't cause any trouble. That goes double for you two, Rodolfo, Zack."

"And don't forget to have fun," Mark added.

"We won't," Zack replied, hugging his father 'goodbye', followed by Lucia. "See you in four weeks."

After Mark and Emily had left, the four children started to carry their duffel bags over to the bus so they could be loaded into the luggage compartments.

"So, Alvin," Rodolfo grinned at his friend. "How'd your grandpa react when he found out_ you_ were going to camp? Bet he nearly had a heart attack when he learned you'd be sleeping in an open air cabin with no AC." Alvin rolled his eyes at Rodolfo's comment.

"Come on, Dolf. Granddad's not as stuffy as he seems. He understands _completely_ that even_ I've_ gotta be allowed to rough it sometimes and go without the limo rides and creature comforts and all. That way, I'll be able to appreciate what _really _counts in life."

"Your mom got him to agree to it, didn't she?" Zack surmised, smirking.

"Well….yeah." At Alvin's admission, the boys laughed. After a moment, however, Zack stopped laughing, noticing a familiar face in the crowd.

"Aw, _no_," he groaned. "Rodolfo, don't look now, but…it's him."

"Who?" Rodolfo followed Zack's gaze and immediately grimaced at the sight of Charles Miller. "Oh, _great_! That's_ just_ what I needed. Four weeks with Charles in my face."

"Charles?" Lucia looked between the boys in slight confusion. "You mean that guy who's picked on you since 2nd grade, Rodolfo?"

"Yeah, that's him," Alvin confirmed. "Hey, don't worry 'bout it, buddy. Maybe he'll fall in a patch of poison ivy and spend the entire month in the first aid cabin getting treated with Zanfel."

"Alvin, get real," Rodolfo sighed before boarding the bus. "When have I _ever _been that lucky?"

* * *

It wasn't much later that the bus was on its way. Lucia had immediately branched off from Zack, Rodolfo and Alvin, and was sitting with a group of third graders, chatting away like old friends.

"So, how many people are there per cabin?" Alvin wondered. "I mean, are we pre-assigned to individual cabins, or can we choose our own?" Zack took a moment to think before replying.

"Well, I think the website said something about cabin assignments, so we'll probably each be assigned to a separate cabin."

"Oh," Alvin seemed slightly put off by this. "I was hoping we'd have a chance at sharing a cabin, and… Rodolfo, please stop turning your head like that! You're starting to remind me of an owl!"

"Yeah, come on, Rodolfo," Zack agreed. "Just because Charles is also going to the camp, that doesn't mean..."

"I'm not looking at_ him_," Rodolfo grumbled, facing straight ahead again.

"Then who do you keep looking at?"

"Hey, guys?" Rodolfo lowered his voice slightly. "Could you do me a favor, and look over at that black haired girl with the sunglasses?"

"Where?" Zack turned his head, trying to spot the person Rodolfo was talking about.

"The one sitting about four rows back, and on the other side of the bus," Rodolfo answered. When Zack and Alvin glanced over at the seat Rodolfo had indicated, they saw a girl their age with straight black hair that fell to halfway between her shoulders and elbows. She was simply looking out the window, gazing almost aimlessly at the scenery, with eyes hidden behind a pair of tinted sunglasses and a placid smile on her face.

"So, what about her?" Alvin questioned as he and Zack sat back down again.

"Tell me honestly," Rodolfo replied. "Do you guys remember seeing that girl before?"

"No," Zack replied after trying to remember. "I don't think so."

"Me neither," Alvin agreed. "Out of curiosity, why?"

"Don't know," Rodolfo shrugged, glancing back at the girl once more. "I…I could have sworn I've seen her somewhere before, but I just can't put my finger on exactly where. I was hoping you guys could help me out, that's all."

"Well, maybe she just has one of those faces," Alvin suggested. "Once, when I was out with my mom, this guy walked up to us, thinking she was Kristin Scott-Thomas."

"That could be it," Zack pointed out.

"Yeah," Rodolfo sighed, not quite convinced. "Maybe."

* * *

The bus ride lasted about four hours, and by the time they arrived at the campground, it was obvious all the campers wanted nothing more then to stretch their legs. When they finally were let off the bus and had a chance to remove their bags from the pile by the bus, the children all lined up in front of a group of camp counselors. After they were all welcomed to the camp, the counselors were each given a roster of the campers that had been assigned to the cabin they were in charge of. As the councilors read off the names of each of the campers, the Boho Kids learned that, while Zack and Rodolfo had been placed together, Alvin was going to stay in a separate cabin.

"No sweat," Alvin shrugged, picking up his bag and waving at his friends before joining his cabin mates. "We'll hang out during the activities we picked."

"You bet," Zack and Rodolfo agreed, waving back before heading off to follow their designated counselor to the cabin to drop off their things, after which they were given a brief tour of the campground.

As the tour went on, Zack thought he was seeing an improvement in Rodolfo. Last night, he'd been very quiet after hearing that his father had also came to the same camp, and then there was this morning, when they'd learned Charles was also coming, which resulted in Rodolfo showing the beginning signs of being in a bad mood. Now that they'd arrived and were looking around the camp, however, he seemed as excited as he'd been when they first started planning to go away to camp. Zack hoped that Rodolfo would keep up his current mood for the rest of their time there. After all, how could he possibly enjoy himself at camp when his 'cousin' was upset about something?

When the tour was over, the counselor brought them all back to the cabin to finish unpacking and spend the next few hours before dinner to get settled and get to know their cabin mates. It turned out that Zack and Rodolfo were sharing their cabin with some other first-timers, namely Tony, a boy from London, and a Korean boy, Kwan.

"Hi," Zack greeted as Rodolfo lay back on his bunk, so he'd be looking up at the bottom of the upper bunk. "My name's Zack Cohen, from New York City, and this is Rodolfo Davis, my 'cousin'." When Rodolfo didn't give any form of greeting, however, Zack looked around at him and saw that Rodolfo had suddenly propped himself up on his elbows, staring at a spot on the bottom of the upper bunk.

"Whacha looking at?" Tony asked.

"Zack?" Rodolfo whispered, reaching up to trace something with his finger. "Look at this." Wondering what was up, Zack joined Rodolfo on the lower bunk and looked at the spot Rodolfo was staring at. From the looks of it, someone had taken a pocket knife at some point during a past summer and carved a message into the wood. As Zack read the message, he realized why Rodolfo had been so interested in it.

'_R.D. AND M.C._

_BEST FRIENDS 4-EVER'_

"I don't believe it," Rodolfo gaped. "I…I think he actually was here, in this cabin."

"Who?" Kwan wondered out loud.

"My dad," Rodolfo replied. "This… this must be the same cabin he stayed in when _he_ came to camp."

* * *

When dinner time came around, Alvin immediately sought out Zack and Rodolfo. After checking up with Lucia, who announced she wanted to sit with her new cabin mates, the three friends selected a place near the window. It was there that Zack filled Alvin in on Rodolfo's discovery.

"Whoa!" Alvin breathed. "That's really cool, Dolf. You might actually be sleeping in the same bunk your dad did."

"I know," Rodolfo agreed, still finding it a lot to take in. The knowledge of that possibility made him somehow feel that much closer to the father he never knew.

At that moment, their mood was spoiled when they heard the last voice they wanted to hear.

"Never thought I'd see the three of _you _here," Charles mocked with a smug grin on his face as he came up behind them.

"Hey, we have just as much right to be here as you, Charles," Alvin pointed out, glaring at their long-time enemy.

"That's not what I'm talking about," Charles let out a false laugh. "I was thinking about how I never thought you'd want to put yourself through the embarrassment."

"What embarrassment?" Zack mirrored Alvin's glare tenfold.

"It's simple. After all, you've never gone off to summer camp before, but _I've _been coming here for eight summers in a row. All things considered, thanks to my experience, you're gonna be shown up very badly when you're outdone in all the competitive stuff by me."

"This is a summer camp, not the junior Olympics," Rodolfo pointed out, making a marked effort to avoid looking at Charles. "We didn't come here to compete."

"Ah, spoken like a person who _knows_ he'll be outshone," Charles' smirk grew even wider. "You might as well pack up now, Dolfy boy, and go back to the city, so you can follow in Daddy's footsteps and always be stuck at second best. Then again, considering what your father did for a living, I should really say the very _bottom_ of the success ladder." At the jab about his late father, Rodolfo made a movement to slug Charles, but before he could break free from Alvin and Zack, who were holding him back, a new voice spoke up.

"Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." When the four boys turned, they saw the speaker was the same black-haired girl Rodolfo had seen on the bus, who had happened to sit down next to them without anyone realizing it. The girl was still wearing the same placid smile that she'd had on the bus, but minus the sunglasses, which revealed that her eyes were a grey color.

"Hey, how about keeping your nose out of a private conversation?" Charles snapped.

"If you want a private conversation," the girl replied, the smile never leaving her face, "then a crowded mess hall is probably not the best place for it. Besides, 'Brown Eyes' is right. The purpose of Adirondack Camp is 'to build strong young hearts and character.' It's not a place to out-compete others."

"Aw, isn't that cute," Charles suddenly directed his condescending nature at the girl. "Rodolfo's being defended by his _girlfriend_."

"Shut up, Charles," Zack growled. "Besides, she's not Rodolfo's girlfriend. We don't even know her."

"Oh, but I'm definitely seeing _sparks_ here," Charles mocked before tweaking the girl's nose. Instantly, the smile disappeared from the girl's face, and she frowned up at Charles.

"Don't do that," she requested.

"Aw, I'm sorry," Charles gave a fake apology in a patronizing tone. "I've invaded your personal space haven't I?" The cruel smirk returning to his face, Charles made to tweak her nose again, but he never got the chance. In the blink of an eye, the girl had grabbed hold of Charles' wrist and twisted his arm up behind his back, so he'd be caught in a hammerlock. This action left Rodolfo, Zack, and Alvin visibly stunned.

"Now," the girl spoke pleasantly, as if she was simply having a casual lunch-time conversation with someone. "Say that your body is made up of nothing but pus and snot."

"Ow, ow, ow!" Charles whimpered in pain as tears began to appear in the corners of his eyes. "My…my body is made up of nothing but pus and snot!" Grinning like a Cheshire cat, the girl glanced over at the boys.

"Is there anything you three want to add?" she asked. For a moment, the three friends were still too stunned to say anything, but then Rodolfo found his voice.

"No…no, we're good," he gaped, staring at the girl in a mixture of awe and intimidation. Nodding in satisfaction, the girl released Charles' arm and allowed him to walk off, nursing and rubbing his sore wrist and arm. Without batting an eye, the girl retuned to her dinner, as if nothing had happened, even going as far as ignoring the fact that Rodolfo, Zack and Alvin were still staring at her in amazement. After almost a full minute, she finally took pity on them and explained.

"My dad and Uncle Justin felt it was wise that I learned how to handle myself in a pinch," she announced. "Of course, it also didn't hurt that I have two older brothers, and no sisters."

"That was _awesome_!" Alvin gaped for a moment before he and Zack introduced themselves.

"Nice t'meet you. I'm Kris. Short for Kristalyn." Kris paused to take a sip from her drink before glancing over about Rodolfo. "What about you, 'Brown Eyes'? You got a name?"

"It's Rodolfo, but… sometimes, people call me Dolf."

"Dolf, huh?" Kris let the nickname process in her mind for a moment. "If you don't mind me saying, 'Dolf' makes you sound like a fat guy in a Shakespearian play. Rodolfo, on the other hand; that might make people think of the male protagonist in a Spanish swashbuckling film. But that's just my opinion, so you don't have to listen to it." Right before Rodolfo could give a response to Kris' comment, the camp director suddenly announced that the dinner session was over, and it was time for the campers to start returning to their assigned cabins.

"Well, see you boys tomorrow," Kris smiled placidly once again before leaving the table and heading over to a group of girls across the room.

"Is it just me," Alvin began after a brief pause, in which the three boys watched Kris walk off, "or is that girl a bit on the, well, odd side?"

"Yeah," Rodolfo and Zack agreed in unison. Exchanging a look, the friends left the mess hall to follow their counselors back to their cabins for the night.

* * *

**AN: **This chapter was rather slow-going, and not much happened, but it will start picking up in the next chapter. I'm also glad I finally got around to introducing Kris. I've been wanting to start writing about her for quite a while now, and I've finally got my chance. Hope you enjoy her as much as I do.


	3. Rodolfo's Goal

Breakfast the next morning was a choice of scrambled eggs or pancakes with fresh strawberries. By the time Rodolfo and Zack arrived in the mess hall, it was already filled with campers eager to start their day. Alvin, upon seeing his friends walk in, waved over at them to get their attention, motioning to the seats he'd saved for them at one of the tables.

"Hey, guys," Alvin grinned. "Wanna see something great? Look over there." Looking over to where Alvin was pointing, Zack and Rodolfo saw Charles sitting on the opposite side of the mess hall. Despite the fact that he kept casting furtive glances in their direction, it was pretty clear that he wasn't about to go over and give them any trouble.

"Wow," Zack chuckled. "That Kris girl must have gotten him really scared, since he won't even come near us."

"And speaking of whom," Alvin nodded over at the tables where the food was being served. Looking over, the three friends saw that Kris was at the table, filling her breakfast plate with pancakes and eggs. When she was finished gathering her breakfast, she turned around and immediately caught sight of the boys. With a smile of recognition, she made her way over to their table.

"Hey there, boys," Kris greeted. "Do you have room for one more at this table?"

"Well, sure," Zack replied, after a very quick nonverbal conversation with Alvin and Rodolfo, in which they all agreed to let her sit with them. "Have a seat."

"So, I take it this is your first time at camp," Kris noted after taking an available seat across from the Boho Kids.

"How'd you know?" Alvin asked.

"Well, I've been coming here since I was a little girl, just like my brothers did when they were younger. I think I'd have remembered seeing you on the bus ride at least once before if you were frequent campers."

"Hey, it's possible that you didn't," Zack pointed out. "After all, you're from New York too, aren't you? And we've _never_ seen you at school before, so…"

"Oh, you wouldn't have seen me at your school," Kris cut Zack off in mid-sentence. "My dad and uncle don't have a lot of faith in the public school system, so they had my brothers and me home schooled instead."

"Home schooled?"

"Yep, that's right," Kris confirmed. "It's really nice, so I don't know why more parents won't try it. For one thing, you get one-on-one tutoring sessions, so you're able to learn at your own pace instead of one that's set by some higher-up bigwig sitting in an office somewhere. Plus, when you're being home schooled, you're able to help out at the Kelly Koffeehouse at a moment's notice.

"OH!" Rodolfo, who had been quiet the whole time, suddenly cried out, causing Alvin and Zack to jump slightly. When they looked over at him, they saw Rodolfo was suddenly grinning in triumph.

"Kelly Koffeehouse!" Rodolfo turned to his friends, the grin never leaving his face. "I_ knew_ I saw her somewhere. How many times has Aunt Emily taken me down there on 'take your kid to work day', when she met with her old coworkers from the _Village Voice _during her lunch hour?

"Oh, so you've been down there, have you?" Kris smiled in satisfaction.

"Hang on," Alvin stepped in. "How can you _work_ there? You're fifteen, aren't you? Don't you have to be sixteen to work?"

"Don't think so, if your family owns the place," Kris shrugged. "My dad and uncle are the co-owners of the Kelly Koffeehouse, so my brothers and I work there. Besides, fifteen, sixteen, what's the big deal? It's only one year, and who's gonna know the difference?" Alvin was about to say something about that, but he never got the chance, because the camp director chose that moment to make an announcement to the campers.

"One of the activities held here at Adirondack Camp," he announced, "is the Blue-White competition, which is held on evenings and weekends. Despite what some people might say, this is not a color war, but a way to show your ability to use good sportsmanship and integrity. Over the course of your time here, there will be over fifty Blue-White events held. Some of these events correspond to activities, while others are all-camp events.

"In a few moments, the counselors will read from the two separate lists that have been organized. These lists will place each of you to either the Blue team or the White team. The affliction you are given is life long, and is also kept within families."

The boys and Kris listened to the rest of the spiel, until the time came for the counselors to announce who would be in each team. To what they couldn't help but attribute to luck, all four of them, as well as Lucia, were placed into the Blue team. What made this news even more pleasant to hear was that Charles had been placed on the White team, meaning that they would be opponents to each other.

"I wonder what sort of activities we do," Zack wondered as the campers started filing out of the mess hall to return to their cabins for the daily cabin inspection.

"Probably the same activities they do every year," Kris explained. "On nights that are dubbed 'triple' nights, the campers are divided into three groups depending on the ages, and each group plays some different sport. For example, the Junior group plays kickball, the Intermediate group plays volleyball, and the Senior group plays soccer. Of course, like the big guy said, there're also the big events, when all age groups help out, like the tug-of-war, the scavenger hunt, and the capture-the-flag game."

"So, what happens if your team wins?" Rodolfo asked.

"Your name's placed on one of the plaques on the wall," Kris explained. "All camp award winners have their names placed on plaques." In curiosity, the boys moved closer to the indicated wall to get a better look. While Alvin and Zack glanced over each of the plaques, Rodolfo found his eyes drawn instinctively to the plaques that had been hung for the 1981 campers. As his eyes skimmed over the names that were permanently written upon the plaque for the Blue-White competition for that year, he came across a few certain name plates, which led to him having a double-take.

"Guys!" Rodolfo cried, his gaze frozen to the names in question. In a flash, his friends were at his side, looking at the names Rodolfo was pointing to.

"No way," Zack breathed, staring at the names 'Mark Cohen,' 'Roger Davis,' and, a little further down the plaque, 'Maureen Johnson.'

"People you know?" Kris looked from the names to the boys, trying to piece things together.

"Yeah," Alvin nodded. "I'd say we know them."

"Is there a problem, you four?" A counselor had suddenly appeared behind the friends. "If you don't hurry, you'll miss the cabin inspection and be late for Period A."

"Uh…" Rodolfo looked back at his father's name on the plaque before continuing. "Sorry. We were just…looking at past winners." The four kids were starting to leave when the counselor stopped them. This time, he was looking closely at Rodolfo and motioning him back. Casting a hesitant glance at his friends, Rodolfo cautiously approached the counselor.

"Listen, I didn't mean to do something wrong," he began, expecting a lecture.

"You're not in trouble," the counselor spoke up. "What's your name?"

"It's Rodolfo, sir." The counselor continued watching him closely, and Rodolfo realized that he was waiting for his last name, too. "Rodolfo Davis."

"Davis?" The counselor repeated in amazement. "_Roger_ Davis?"

"Um…yeah," Rodolfo confirmed, visibly surprised that the counselor knew that. "He was my father." The counselor stared at Rodolfo for a moment before turning to another group of counselors nearby.

"Hey, Greg!" the counselor called one of them over. "Greg, get over here!"

"Something wrong, John?" Greg asked after walking up, looking down at Rodolfo in curiosity.

"Greg," John spoke with a hand on Rodolfo's shoulder. "Look closely. Does this boy look like anyone?" Greg studied Rodolfo's face for a moment, resulting in the sixteen-year-old to feel slightly self-conscious. Before Greg could take a guess, John continued speaking. "This is Roger Davis' son."

"You're kidding!" Greg's eyes widened as he looked even closer at Rodolfo. "I don't believe...why didn't I see it before? He looks just like him, right down to the expression. Roger _always_ had that same expression on his face."

"You knew my dad?" Rodolfo looked from Greg to John.

"We shared a cabin with him back when we were campers," John explained. "When he wasn't hanging around with his friend, Mark Cohen, you could _always _find him there during our free periods, messing around with that guitar of his."

"We used to joke that he'd probably marry that thing one day," Greg remembered fondly. "So, how's he doing now?" Rodolfo immediately looked down, feeling even more awkward then he did before.

"Actually, my dad died," Rodolfo answered. "Back when I was two and a half."

"No," Greg and John shared a stunned look. "But… how?"

"It's complicated," Rodolfo mumbled. He really didn't want to go into that subject at the moment. He'd learned the truth of how his parents had died when he was thirteen; how they had both gotten addicted to drugs, and wound up with HIV, which had eventually progressed into full-blown AIDS when Rodolfo was very young. Because of this, Rodolfo chose to be vague in his explanation. "He and my mom got very sick, and didn't get better. Uncle Mark and Aunt Emily raised me after they died."

"Oh," Greg's face fell at the news. "I'm so sorry."

"Looks like what they say is true," John added in equal sorrow. "The good really _do_ die young."

"So, my dad went to camp with you?" Rodolfo tried to shift the conversation to a more cheerful topic.

"He certainly did," John confirmed. "Come to think of it, if it wasn't for him and Mark, that friend of his who you say raised you after Roger died, we might _never _have won the Blue-White Competition that year."

"Yeah, we certainly would have lost the capture the flag game _and_ the scavenger hunt if it hadn't been for those two," Greg agreed. "Roger's stubbornness and Mark's keen eyes. Wonderful combination." Rodolfo was quiet as he took this in. His father, with Uncle Mark, had helped the Blue team to win, and had earned their names on that plaque on the wall.

* * *

Zack, Alvin and Kris waited outside the mess hall until Rodolfo walked out to join them.

"What happened?" Zack asked.

"Did you get in trouble?" Alvin voiced his worry.

"They went to camp with out dads, Zack," Rodolfo announced. "And they knew my dad."

"No way," Zack looked back at the mess hall in amazement as the four friends started to head off to their cabins.

"So, what did they say?" Kris questioned.

"My dad and Zack's dad helped the Blue team win the Blue-White competition, back in 1981," Rodolfo explained, the wonder in his brown eyes being replaced by a hardened, determined gleam. "And that's what_ I'm_ gonna do, too." For a moment, Rodolfo stopped walking, causing his friends to look at him, wondering what he was trying to say. "I'm, going to make _sure_ the Blue team wins this year, too," Rodolfo vowed. "I'm getting my name on that wall, just like my dad did when he was my age."


	4. The Drawing

"Rodolfo! Cousin Rodolfo!" Upon hearing his name being called, the brown eyed boy, who had been walking up to the basketball courts for his first Period C activity, looked over to see Lucia hurrying up to him.

"What's up, Luce?" Rodolfo asked his 'cousin' after she'd caught up to him.

"My friend, Linda, just got a bloody nose, and had to go to the first aid cabin," Lucia explained.

"Well… I'm sorry to hear that, but what do you want me to do?" Rodolfo blinked. It wasn't that he didn't feel sympathy for Lucia's friend, but he couldn't help wondering what that had to do with him.

"With Linda's bloody nose, she can't go to the camp activity period with me," Lucia continued. "Because of that, we're one person below the minimum limit. If we don't find someone to sit in for her, then I won't be able to do the activity at all."

"Let me guess. You want me to be the sit-in guy," Rodolfo sighed. "Why don't you ask Zack? Or even Alvin?"

"Because I can't find them," Lucia stated matter-of-factly. "Please, Rodolfo? You _gotta_ come and fill in for Linda! Please, please, please, please…."

"Okay, okay!" Rodolfo cried. "Just stop saying 'please,' all right? You know, Cousin Penny was right about you. You've been spending _way_ too much time with Auntie Maureen." Lucia just grinned widely and started to pull Rodolfo off to her activity. As they made their way away from the basketball courts, Rodolfo suddenly started to wonder what exactly he'd just volunteered for.

"Why did I agree to this?" Rodolfo mumbled to himself once he was seated within the cabin Lucia's activity was in. He was probably the oldest person in there, and was surrounded with second and third graders.

"All right then, campers," the overseeing counselor began. "Welcome to Adirondack Camp's fine arts activity." Rodolfo could not hold back the slight wince at hearing the words 'fine arts'. Every time he heard those words, he always remembered that infamous school field trip to the Metropolitan Museum in eighth grade. The tour guide his class had gotten stuck with had felt the need to point out every single nuance in what seemed like every artifact on exhibit, even the so-called art pieces that looked like a kindergartener had made them. By the time they were allowed to go home, Rodolfo and Zack had been so wiped out, all they wanted to do was just roll over on their loft beds and not move for a month. Because of the memories of that traumatic day, Rodolfo almost didn't hear the counselor giving the instructions.

"Rodolfo, wake up!" Lucia lightly shoved him, pulling him out of his thoughts. "We're starting. We have to create something with the things on the table." Rodolfo glanced over at the art supplies that had been laid out in front of them, which included crayons, colored pencils, markers, and even some watercolor paints. With a loud sigh, Rodolfo took one of the sheets of paper, and began to stare at it for a moment. He never should have agreed to this. Apart from the coloring books he'd owned as a toddler, he'd never colored or drew anything in his life. He preferred spending time with Zack and Alvin at the park or the arcade. Because of this, he didn't know where to begin.

For the longest time, Rodolfo cast his eyes all around the activities cabin, looking for something he could draw, just to pass the time until this was over and he could go back to the things he wanted to do. Seriously, what was he thinking when he let Lucia talk him into this? This was going to be incredibly hard.

After giving another groaning sigh, Rodolfo glanced out the window and his eyes fell upon a pair of bushy tailed squirrels scampering around, getting into brief scuffles, and chasing each other around. For a few moments, Rodolfo watched their antics with a crooked smile on his face, until he instinctively reached for the box of colored pencils, rooting around for the right shade of gray. For the rest of the activity period, Rodolfo kept switching between colored pencils, glancing back at the squirrels occasionally to refresh his memory of his unwitting models. Just as he went over the tails one last time to make them appear extra bushy, the counselor announced that the activity period had came to an end and it was time to meet at the flagpole for snack time. Returning the colored pencils he'd used to their basket, Rodolfo picked up his drawing, examining it as he and Lucia, now wearing a necklace made from beads and hemp, started to make their way out of the activities cabin. When they arrived at the flagpole, Rodolfo and Lucia immediately caught sight of Alvin, Zack and Kris, who were already receiving the snacks the camp provided.

"Hey, Rodolfo," Zack waved, scooting over to make room for his 'cousin' as Lucia joined her own friends. "You ready for Period D?"

"I guess," Rodolfo shrugged, still occasionally looking at his drawing.

"What's on your schedule?" Kris asked in curiosity between sips of her drink.

"Wasn't it archery?" Rodolfo turning to his friends.

"Yeah, that's what we signed up for," Alvin confirmed. For a time, the four friends ate their snacks in silence.

"You know, I looked on the schedule," Zack began, glancing at Rodolfo. "The first major event for the Blue-White competition is this weekend. It's going to be a canoe race."

"A race, huh?" Rodolfo frowned in contemplation, not forgetting his promise to help the blue team win the competition the way his father did.

"That does sound like fun," Kris smiled to herself. "Uncle Justin taught me how to paddle a canoe when I was nine, when we took a vacation at my grandparents' house in Michigan."

"Wow, what kid did you mooch _that_ drawing off of?" Alvin suddenly noticed the picture of the two squirrels in Rodolfo's hand.

"Whoever it was, he had to have _tons_ of art lessons," Zack agreed, taking the picture to look at it closer.

"Knock it off, guys," Rodolfo snatched his drawing back. "It was just something I did when I sat in for Lucia's friend at her stupid arts and crafts thing."

"No way," Zack stared. "Rodolfo, the person who _hates_ art, actually drew a picture?"

"Hey, quit trying to pull our legs, buddy," Alvin laughed, lightly shoving his friend's shoulder. "You've never drawn anything in your life, and you expect us to believe you did _this_?"

"Guys, seriously! Why would I lie about drawing a dumb picture?"

"I believe him," Kris spoke up. "You can't lie and look someone straight in the eye unless you have a corrupted soul, and you won't get me believing that about him. And for what it's worth, if this is your first time drawing an actual picture, Rodolfo, then you've had a hidden talent buried away. Not even the squirrels I see at my Grandparents' place look this lifelike." Rodolfo remained quiet for a moment, looking between his drawing and the black-haired girl.

"Thanks, Kris," he nodded in gratitude, folding his picture four ways to put in his pocket.

"You're not kidding, are you?" Zack and Alvin gaped in shock. "You_ actually_ drew that?"

"I did," Rodolfo confirmed.

"Dang," Alvin whistled. "The girl's right, buddy. You've been holding out on us talent-wise for years." Rodolfo merely shrugged in response. For the rest of the snack time, the drawing was not mentioned again, and the topic turned to the upcoming canoe race.


	5. The Canoe Race

The campers were all assembled at the docks on the first Saturday afternoon at camp, separated into their two teams for the first major Blue-White competition event. The Boho Kids stood side-by-side, listening to the counselors giving the directions and rules of the canoe races. There were to be two people per canoe, and they would work together to paddle their canoe from the starting point to the designated point on the other side of the campground. The winning team would be the first one who had each team member reach the end point.

As the campers began to prepare for the race, Rodolfo and Zack made their way to one of the canoes. Out of the corners of their eyes, they saw Alvin partnering up with another boy who they hadn't gotten around to knowing by name quite yet. A little further down, they saw Kris standing alone by her canoe, as the other girls of the blue team all teamed up with someone else, barely giving Kris a second glance. Seconds after they'd noticed this, Lucia suddenly stepped up to her side after separating herself from a group of third graders. For a brief moment, Kris and Lucia appeared to have a conversation, before entering one of the canoes together.

"Hey, looks like your little sister made a new friend, Zachy," a voice suddenly pointed out from behind them. Instantly, Rodolfo and Zack grimaced, recognizing the voice as Charles.'

"What do you want, Charles?" Rodolfo groaned, frowning at his rival-since-childhood.

"Nothing," Charles replied. "I just noticed that the canoe you picked for this race was the same one I was using the other day. I wanted you two to know that_ that_ canoe steers to the left, so you might not be able to handle it all that well. If you want, I'd be happy to trade canoes with you. It might give you a better chance at winning this race."

"Yeah, right," Zack rolled his eyes. "Like _you'd_ want to help us."

"As shocking as it may be," Charles smirked, "I have no angle this time. I just didn't want you two to have an unfair disadvantage. After all, I can handle a difficult canoe. You two, on the other hand; I seriously doubt you could say the same. Just face it, you'll need all the help you can get"

"Nice try, Charles," Rodolfo turned his back on his enemy. "We're not going to fall for your tricks."

"Suit yourselves," Charles shrugged, returning to the canoe he'd offered giving to Zack and Rodolfo, smirking wider as he did so.

"How much you wanna bet that it's_ his_ canoe that's hard to steer?" Zack grumbled as he and Rodolfo climbed into their canoe.

"No kidding," Rodolfo agreed. "He was just _pretending _to be helpful, because he wanted us to loose. We know him better then that."

"So, what do you say, Rodolfo?" Zack grinned at his 'cousin' once they'd taken up their paddles and prepared to cast off from the docks once the counselor gave the word. "Ready to win this one for our dads?"

"You bet," Rodolfo nodded, an identical grin on his face.

Once the starting flag had been waved, the campers went to work in paddling their canoes off to begin the race. As they moved their canoe through the lake, Rodolfo and Zack glanced around at the other canoes. If it wasn't for the telltale color-coded t-shirts everyone was wearing, it would have been impossible for them to tell which team was manning each canoe. From the looks of things, the Blue team was in the lead, and there was no obvious chance of them loosing this race. The optimistic outlook Rodolfo and Zack were sharing, however, completely changed as the camp's flagpole came into sight.

It had happened so gradually, the two boys didn't even notice it at first. It wasn't until Zack had to pause to scratch his leg that he became aware of the problem. Once the itch had been dealt with, the bespectacled boy placed his foot back down, and was alerted by the sound of the water sloshing about under his sneaker. When he looked down, he found that the bottom of the canoe was slowly filling with water.

"Rodolfo!" Zack cried urgently. "We've got a leak in this canoe!"

"What?" Rodolfo immediately stopped paddling and spun around. A panicked look appeared on his face when he saw the problem. "Quick, we gotta find the hole!" The race momentarily forgotten, Zack and Rodolfo started to run their hands across the bottom of the canoe as the water level progressively rose higher. After a frantic search, they managed to locate the hole, which had been placed under one of the seats. The hole itself was so large, there was no way they could patch it up quickly enough. As this conclusion registered in their minds, a nasty laugh reached their ears. Glancing over at the direction of the laugh, they saw Charles paddling by in his canoe.

"Tried to offer, you two," Charles taunted, moving right past them. Instantly, Rodolfo gritted his teeth, his hand closing into a fist.

"Charles," he growled. "That scumbag! He sabotaged us!"

"He must have pretended to offer us his canoe, knowing we'd turn him down," Zack realized, equally as angry as Rodolfo. "I can't believe he actually tricked us like that!"

By now, it was painfully obvious the canoe was close to sinking, and the water had risen up to their ankles. Zack and Rodolfo, however, were at a loss to what they should do. If they tried to reach the shore, would the canoe flood even faster? On the other hand, if they just sat there, they would sink regardless.

As they tried to figure out what to do, another voice spoke up.

"Need a hand, boys?"

Rodolfo and Zack looked up from the water filling the canoe to see Kris and Lucia had paddled their canoe over to them, realizing their problem.

"Here, climb in," Kris offered, holding out a hand to help them into their canoe.

"Just be careful," Lucia advised. "We don't wanna get capsized."

"Thanks, Luce, Kris," Zack grinned, accepting the girls' offer. Moving carefully to not tip over the other canoe, Zack and Rodolfo climbed out of the nearly submerged canoe that Charles' had sabotaged. Once they were safe on board, Lucia and Kris continued their way toward the finish line. As the girls paddled the canoe along, Zack explained to them what must have happened.

"That Charles must really hate you two, huh?" Kris surmised, casting her serene smile at the boys.

"That's putting it lightly," Rodolfo sulked, his arms crossed as he slumped down, visibly sore from the turn of events.

A short time later, the four of them made it to the finish line, and were greeted by a sight that made Rodolfo's anger increase. When Lucia and Kris had stopped to help them out, the final member of the White team had passed them, resulting in the Blue team to loose the race. Once the dejected friends had pulled their canoe up onto shore, Charles suddenly appeared in front of them to pour salt on their wounds.

"Aw, too bad about the race, Dolfy boy," Charles grinned in a wickedly gloating manner. "It must be a pretty bad feeling to be all _washed up_." The moment Charles made that jab, Rodolfo suddenly snapped and tackled him to the ground.

"You stupid, miserable, cheating…" Rodolfo snarled, wrestling with Charles, seeing nothing but red.

"Rodolfo, cut it out!" Zack cried, trying to pull Rodolfo off of his opponent to no avail. His anger getting the better of him, Rodolfo landed a hard punch to Charles' face, which Charles immediately returned. The moment he did so, the fighting pair were yanked apart by one of the counselors.

"That's enough!" the counselor cried out, looking as if he was about to blow a gasket. "What is going on here?"

"He started it," Charles immediately adopted an innocent act. "I was just standing here, and Rodolfo suddenly ran up and attacked me out of nowhere!"

"Quit lying!" Rodolfo snapped, trying to get at him again. "You cheated, Charles! You put a hole into our canoe so it would sink during the race!"

"Why would I do that?" Charles continued to feign innocence. "That's not good sportsmanship, is it?"

"Both of you, be quiet," the counselor ordered. "I want the two of you to return to your cabins immediately. Fighting is not allowed in this summer camp, regardless of who started it. Neither one of you will be allowed to participate in any more activities today." Rodolfo glared at Charles one last time before storming off to his cabin, the unfairness of the situation eating away at him.


	6. Wisdom from a Musician in Training

Rodolfo collapsed onto his cot, punching his pillow in frustration. Just when he thought he couldn't hate Charles even more…. The scumbag cheated in the canoe race, and had barely gotten a slap on the wrist. His team's victory in the canoe race hadn't even been disqualified, leaving his cheating unpunished. The unfairness of it was almost more then he could take.

"Rodolfo?" Zack's voice suddenly spoke from somewhere behind him, sounding very hesitant at bothering him. "Um…I just wanted to tell you that they're serving lunch, now. Are…are you going to…."

"No," Rodolfo huffed. "There's _no_ way I'm going to go down there and see Charles' gloating face."

"Hey, buddy," Alvin added, joining the conversation. "You realize that not coming to lunch would mean showing Charles that he's gotten to you, don't you? Is that what you want?"

"Just get out!" Rodolfo yelled, turning around to chuck his pillow at his friends. "I just wanna be alone, do you get that? Get out!" Shaking his head, Alvin stepped out, for nothing else but avoiding Rodolfo's tantrum, but Zack stayed put for a moment longer, meeting Rodolfo's eyes. With a grunt, Rodolfo turned his head away from his 'cousin'. He hated when Zack gave him that 'you're acting like a two-year-old' look. Mostly because he knew Zack usually was right when he gave him that look, and that just got Rodolfo even more upset.

When he was sure he was alone again, Rodolfo sprawled out on his cot. The longer he stayed in that position, however, the more another feeling started to overcome his anger. He'd really let his father down today. Not only had he lost his team the first major event in the Blue-White competition, but he'd also blown any chance he had on living up to the achievements Roger had once made at camp. Letting his temper get the better of him was a great way to get on the bad side of the counselors, and there was no way they wouldn't forget about it in the future competitions. He didn't see any way he could make up for this easily. There was no denying that he'd blown it today.

"Bet you're proud of me now, Dad," Rodolfo whispered, half to himself, rolling over onto his stomach. After a short hesitation, Rodolfo reached over to the shelf where he stored some of the things he'd brought with him to camp, picking up an old walkman, which had originally belonged to his late Uncle Collins. With a heavy sigh, Rodolfo momentarily took out the cassette tape that was stored inside, running a thumb over the plastic shell fondly before returning it to its original place. This was the only cassette tape Rodolfo ever listened to on this walkman, so it rarely was taken out. He especially liked listening to it when he was feeling upset about something, and now certainly qualified.

Eyes falling shut to immerse himself in the music, Rodolfo pressed the play button and was rewarded by the familiar, raw voice of his father, accompanied by the chords from the fender guitar that now hung on the Condo's wall. Roger had put the old cassette tape together when Rodolfo had been a baby, and had given it to him on his first birthday, so he'd always be able to hear his father sing, even after he was gone. For that reason, the cassette tape had always been one of Rodolfo's prized possessions, and whenever he played it, he always felt closer to the father he'd never known.

Rodolfo listened to the cassette tape of Roger singing until he reached the end of the final song that had been recorded on the tape, which was the old lullaby Roger used to sing to him as a baby. Only then did he turn the old walkman off. Even after he'd finished listening to the songs Roger had compiled together, Rodolfo still let the memory of his father's voice echo through his mind, so it was a while before it registered that the sound of the guitar being played was not just in his head.

Sitting up in his cot, Rodolfo was quiet for a moment, listening to the unseen guitar being played, but then he made his way to the door. A short distance away from his cabin, Kris was sitting on a fallen log with her back to him. Balanced on her lap was an old-looking guitar, which she was using to play a song. Rodolfo stood watching for a few minutes before slowly approaching her. In doing so, he was able to catch some words that she was singing under her breath as she played.

_That's the way it is.  
You gotta roll with the punches.  
That's the way it goes.  
You gotta bend when the wind blows.  
You live you learn,  
You crash and burn.  
It's hit or miss,  
And that's the way it is._

"I didn't know you could play," Rodolfo stated impassively after her song was over.

"Yep," Kris confirmed, placing the guitar on her lap and brushing her black hair out of her face. "I've been playing since I was very small. Hope I didn't bother you too much with my guitar. My cabin mates get annoyed by it, so I have to practice away from them."

"No, it's fine," Rodolfo insisted. "My… my dad used to play, too. His fender still hangs on the wall back home."

"A fender, huh?" Kris smiled in interest. "I wouldn't mind seeing it sometime. So, you feeling any better, Rodolfo?" Instantly, a scowl appeared on Rodolfo's face at the vague reminder of what had happened earlier.

"If you must know, no," he answered before finding himself take a seat next to Kris on the log.

"Well, don't let it get you down too much," Kris suggested. "After all, failure doesn't mean that _you're_ a failure. It just means you have not yet succeeded."

"Yeah, that really helps," Rodolfo muttered sarcastically.

"Out of curiosity, why is this competition so important to you?" Kris asked.

"Because my dad helped win it when he came to camp at my age," Rodolfo explained. "He died when I was a kid, so all I have of him is stories."

"So, you want to match what he did at camp, to show you deserve his name, is that it?" Kris surmised.

"Forget it," Rodolfo grunted. "You wouldn't understand." Kris didn't reply for a moment.

"If you don't mind me asking, how did he die?" Rodolfo stared at Kris for a moment. He had not really expected her to ask him _that_. He almost gave his usual answer to that question, and said that it was complicated, but there was something in Kris' expression that convinced him to be honest about the matter.

"He and my mom died from… complications. From the AIDS virus."

"I'm really very sorry, Rodolfo," Kris apologized, her honesty reflected in her face. The two were quiet for a while, both staring aimlessly at the ground until Kris broke the silence. "My mother's dead, too." Rodolfo looked up at Kris in surprise to see her eyes were still focused on the guitar resting on her lap. "Breast cancer. The other slow killer. I was three."

"Oh," Rodolfo's face fell at the news. "I'm sorry, too."

"Yeah," Kris nodded. "You know, this guitar was hers once. Before she died, in addition to helping out with running the coffeehouse, she also formed a band with Dad and Uncle Justin. My mom played guitar, while Uncle Justin used the banjo, and Dad manned the violin. But when Mom died, there was no one who could take her place on the guitar, since my brothers were both in charge of playing the harmonica in the family band, and weren't interested in learning another instrument. That's why I started taking lessons.

"I play the guitar because I want to live up to my mother's achievements, and keep her alive through me. That's pretty much what you want to do with this Blue-White competition, isn't it?" Rodolfo had been stunned to silence with how much Kris could relate to his feelings about him and his father. Maybe she did understand how he felt about this competition after all. When Kris had asked her question, however, he remembered his earlier failure at the canoe race.

"Doesn't matter much now," Rodolfo shrugged. "You saw what happened today. I'd be very lucky if they allow me to compete in any more of the major events."

"They will," Kris stated confidently. "They won't punish you like that because of one little offense. It wasn't_ anything_ like last year. Someone actually set fire to the docks. They got sent home for that."

"You're kidding!" Rodolfo's jaw dropped in amazement.

"Yep, the docks were off limits for the rest of the summer that year," Kris grinned. "You gotta admit, starting a fight with someone pales in comparison after that."

"I guess," Rodolfo gave her a half-smile. "But… that doesn't change the fact that the white team's still in the lead after today, and since I'm not allowed to do anything else…"

"Neither is Charles," Kris reasoned. "I'd say that makes things fair and even-sided. And it's only for today. Tomorrow, you can start all over again. Besides, now you have another reason to win this competition, apart from making your father proud, of course. It would certainly wipe the smirk off Charles' face if you turn things around and win this."

"Yeah," Rodolfo grinned at the thought. "It really would. Thanks, Kris." At that moment, Rodolfo's stomach started to growl. "Oh, right. I forgot I skipped out on lunch today," he remembered. "Hope I can make it to snack time."

"I wouldn't worry about that," Kris reached into her nearby guitar case and pulled out a granola bar. "Here, this should tide you over until then."

"Hey, thanks again, Kris," Rodolfo accepted the granola bar. As he started to eat it, Kris packed up her guitar and got up to leave.

"So, I'll see you at dinner, right?" Kris asked

"Definitely," Rodolfo nodded. Downing the last few bites of his granola bar, Rodolfo watched Kris head off to her cabin, until he suddenly remembered that Kris hadn't eaten lunch, either. "Hey, Kris! Aren't you going to eat, too?"

"Oh, don't worry about that," Kris called back. "I have a whole box of granola bars back in my cabin." Without another word, Kris continued on her way, leaving Rodolfo with a sudden suspicion. When Kris had chosen to practice her guitar outside his cabin, had she chosen that spot _knowing_ that he had refused to eat lunch in the mess hall that day, with the intention of giving him the granola bar to keep him from going hungry?


	7. With a Renewed Resolve

**AN: **Sorry for the long wait. All the files for my stories are stored on my travel drive, which I ended up loosing in the library last Wednesday. Thankfully, I got an e-mail later on from someone who found it, but due to forces outside our control, I didn't get it back until Tuesday. Now that it's back, however, I can continue updating again. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter. A thank you to HarryPotterRENThead and SCREAMINGwhispers for their help in giving me ideas for other activities people do at camp. Also, I hope SCREAMINGwhispers likes the beginning of this chapter. He asked for some Rodolfo/Zack interaction a while back, and that's just what I did here.

* * *

"Thanks for joining me for this, Rodolfo," Zack spoke to his 'cousin' as the two boys made their way across the campgrounds, heading off to the beginner rock climbing class.

"Yeah, well…" Rodolfo shrugged. "Figured it was the least I could do to make up for being a jerk to you yesterday."

"Oh, that's all right," Zack replied with a cheeky grin. "We've been sharing a room since we were babies. I'm used to you being a jerk by now." Zack's jibe was rewarded by a scowl and a friendly shove.

"Watch it, Zacky," Rodolfo smirked. "You don't see _me_ complaining when you're shining that flashlight around at night and keeping me up while you're writing out your letters to Zoey in Iowa." At the unexpected mention of Zoey, Zack's eyes grew wide, and he immediately glanced down at his shoelaces. Rodolfo couldn't hold back a low chuckle at seeing the sudden blush forming across Zack's face. It had been six months since the whole incident with Zoey and her abusive father, Peter, but even now, Zoey's name could still leave Zack too flustered to come up with a counter-argument. For this reason, Rodolfo often employed her name as his ultimate weapon against Zack.

"So….I think I saw they were serving meatloaf for dinner, tonight," Zack announced casually, clearly hoping to draw their conversation away from Zoey. "I know how much you like meatloaf, Rodolfo."

By now, the two boys had made it to the place where the beginning rock climbing class was being held. Among the crowd of campers attending the class, they saw Alvin, Kris and Lucia, but since there were no available seats near them, they only could wave over to them before taking two available seats. No sooner had they sat down did the counselor began the class, which mainly consisted of going over safety protocol and explaining the proper use of the various pieces of equipment. Finally, the attending campers were divided into groups of two or three. As Rodolfo collaborated with Zack and Alvin, he glanced over to see Kris and Lucia heading off together to one of the stations, where they started to put on the climbing harnesses that had been laid out. When he looked back at his friends, he saw from the looks on their faces that they'd also noticed this.

* * *

After the class was over, the group of campers began to file off for lunch in the mess hall. However, Zack, remembering his promise to look after his sister, doubled back to walk next to Lucia.

"Hey, Luce," Zack began. "You enjoying camp?"

"Yeah, it's great," Lucia replied with a smile. "Why? Aren't you?"

"Of course, but…I was just noticing. You're partnering up with Kris a lot, instead of the other campers in your age group. So...I just was wondering if something was wrong. Are you having trouble making friends or something?"

"No, it's not like that," Lucia shook her head. "It's Kris who has the trouble. She's been coming to this camp since she was my age, but I think we're the first people who've actually talked to her. I know the counselors try to discourage cliques forming, but… most of the other girls think she's weird, and try to avoid her. But that's not the case. Sure, she's got some quirks, but I think she's cool. So I like being her partner for the activities we do together. She tells me about her life at the coffeehouse, and all the stuff she does at her grandparents' place in Michigan when they spend holidays up there, and then, she listens to the stories about our extended family."

Zack listened to Lucia's explanation in silence, feeling slightly guilty upon hearing how the other girls at camp shunned Kris for being weird. Even he, Rodolfo and Alvin thought she was odd when they first met. It was then that he made an unspoken promise to try and include Kris into more of the activities he did with his friends. Perhaps she'd like to come along with them on the nature hike tomorrow. Before Zack could say anything about it, however, Lucia started talking again.

"Oh, Zack, before I forget," she said. "Tell Rodolfo and Alvin that Kris said she overheard some other kids saying that the next major event is a tug-of-war game out on the beach. I'd tell them myself, but I was going to save Kris a seat at lunch today, so we can talk about what we're going to do at our Period C activity afterwards. We're gonna be learning how to use stilts! See you later!" Without another word, Lucia was hurrying off to the mess hall, waving back at her brother. Zack stood where he was for a moment, watching her run off, but then turned to try and find Rodolfo and Alvin.

* * *

The time soon came for the tug-of-war match. All the campers had assembled on the beach, with the White team on the left and the Blue team positioned on the right side of a hundred foot long rope.

"The goal of this event is simple," the head counselor announced. "The team who manages to pull the opposing team over the dividing line earns the winning point." As the counselor spoke, he gestured to a length of blue latex stretch band that had been laid out on the sand between the two groups of campers to be used as the 'dividing line'.

It was with a sigh of preparation that Rodolfo took hold of his section of the rope, with Zack and Alvin behind him, and Lucia near the back of the line.

"You gonna be okay this time around, buddy?" Alvin asked cautiously.

"Yes, Alvin, I'm okay," Rodolfo rolled his eyes. "Besides, it'll be harder for Charles to cheat this time."

"He has a point." The boys looked down simultaneously as they heard Kris speaking from somewhere near their knees. The black-haired girl was crouching down, rubbing sand onto her hands.

"What're you…?" Zack asked as the three boys stared at her in confusion.

"It helps improve your grip," Kris explained. "That's what my granddad told me when we netted trout in the stream near his place." The friends shared a glance, but then followed her example in rubbing the sand into their hands, ignoring the strange looks from the other campers. With their grips strengthened, the four teens took hold of the rope again, preparing for the tug-of-war to begin.

As the campers braced themselves, the head counselor blew his whistle, signaling the beginning of the competition. Both teams immediately began to pull on their end of the rope, everyone throwing their full weight into the effort. It did not take long for their arms to ache from the strain, and everywhere, sand was disturbed as the many pairs of feet dug up the ground. Still, no one showed any sign of letting up.

Arms tiring, Rodolfo felt the rope starting to slip through his hands, the cords rubbing against his skin, threatening to leave marks. His instincts were screaming at him to let go of the rope, and for a brief moment, he almost did. That changed when he chanced a glance over at the opposing team. Charles was positioned near the front of the line, making it possible for Rodolfo to catch his eye, and see his taunting smirk. That smirk brought thoughts of him loosing to Charles again to Rodolfo's mind. As a result, his arms tensed, and he put even more of his strength into pulling his end of the rope.

* * *

A large handful of the campers were assembled in the first aid cabin, having their hands treated for rope burn. Rodolfo was sitting among them in a chair by the window, next to Lucia who was having a bandage wrapped around her raw hands by one of the attending camp nurses. Zack, Alvin and Kris were standing nearby, waiting for Rodolfo and Lucia to receive their first aid so they could go off and celebrate the Blue team's victory together.

"Well, it's a good thing the next big events won't require the use of hands," Alvin noted. "Heard it's a kickball game. All feet, no hands."

"That sounds good," Rodolfo nodded, looking down at his red palms. "I don't think I'll be able to hold anything for a while, anyway."

"I think a lot of people would say the same," Zack agreed, looking around the room at the number of kids having their hands tended to, spotting Tony and Kwan among them. "That was some rope, wasn't it?"

"I overheard some of the counselors talking," Lucia announced. "Apparently, they've been trying to get a new rope for a while now. The rope we used has seen quite a few summers, and is starting to get very coarse."

"Yeah, I could have told you that," Kris agreed. "That's the same rope my brothers used when they came to camp."

"How can you tell?" Alvin blinked. "It's a rope. Don't they all look the same?" Kris looked at him as if he was crazy.

"And next, I suppose you're going to tell me that all ducks look the same."

"They _do_," Alvin replied in a flat tone. Kris continued to give him a pitying glance, but then looked away, shaking her head.

"Come on, guys," Rodolfo laughed. "Don't start a fight. I mean, we're tied with the White team, now. That should be a good thing. They're not in the lead anymore."

"That could change pretty soon," Zack reminded. "You do remember that, right?"

"Doesn't matter," Rodolfo grinned confidently. "At the end, it'll only matter who's won the most, right? We're just gonna have to keep on going and make sure we win more then the other team." Alvin and Zack shared a brief glance in surprise. Was this the same Rodolfo who sulked after the results of last week's canoe race?

"You feeling okay, buddy?" Alvin eyed his friend skeptically. "You weren't like this after the…."

"The canoe race, I know," Rodolfo's grin widened. "Well, let's just say I figured it out. Sometimes you just… have to roll with the punches." With that, Rodolfo cast a brief smile over at Kris, which she returned with a nod.


	8. Letter from Camp

**AN: **This is a very short filler chapter, but the next chapter will be much longer. Either way, I figured you'd enjoy seeing some cameos of the adult Bohos at this point. My main goal was to have a little break in the action, and to throw in a Mark/Roger/Maureen friendship undertone into the story. Enjoy, and R&R.

* * *

"Well look who's finally decided to show his face here," Maureen jibed as Benny and Allison entered the Life Café, where she was already sitting with Mark, Emily, Joanne, Penny, James and Sammy, who had taken up a spot on Penny's lap. "We didn't think you'd _ever_ make the effort to join us for family night."

"It wasn't because we didn't want to, Maureen," Benny pointed out, accepting the seat next to James when he offered it. "Business has just been time-consuming lately. I was very lucky to even _get _this night off from the office."

"Either way," Mark spoke up, "It's good to have you join us. It was starting to feel like the old days, when you put your money before your friends."

"How long are you going to milk that one for?" Benny frowned at the reminder at first, but then joined into the laughter of the others.

"It still feels weird being here without Zack, Rodolfo and Lucia," Joanne noted, glancing over at the empty chairs that the children usually occupied.

"Believe me, I know exactly what you're talking about," Allison agreed. "Our place is so quiet now, with Alvin off at camp."

"It's funny you should mention them," Emily announced, taking an envelope out of her bag. "We got a letter this afternoon from Zack."

"I bet they're having a lot of fun out there," Penny mused, tussling Sammy's hair with the hand that wasn't currently holding James' under the table.

"Why couldn't _I_ go to camp, too?" Sammy asked, looking up at James and Penny, sounding upset that he'd been excluded.

"I told you, Sammy," James smiled at his son gently. "You're too young to go to camp this year. Adirondack Camp is just for kids who are seven and older. Maybe you can go next year."

"So, what does Zack's letter say?" Allison asked. With everyone's attention now on the contents of the letter, Mark took up the job of reading aloud.

_Camp's been going great. Yesterday, we had one of the final major Blue-White events of the year, which was a scavenger hunt in the woods. I remember Alvin and Rodolfo, among others, complaining about how one of the items we needed to find was 'the name of the capital of Azerbaijan' (which is Baku, apparently). Can't say I blame them. How we're expected to know that, I'll never know. Fortunately, by some form of lucky coincidence, Kwan, one of Rodolfo and my cabin-mates, had a pen pal from that area at one point, so he was a major help for our team in finding that item. Still, I don't think we could have won the scavenger hunt if Kris had been on the White team. I'm still in amazement as to how she found __five__ four leaf clovers; we only needed to find one! Although, when Alvin saw me write this letter, he wouldn't stop bugging me until I promised to mention that Kris claimed she had help in finding the four leaf clovers from some ants, so you would know, in a direct quote, 'that she's __super__ bizarre.'_

_Later on today, during our rest period after lunch, the five of us (Rodolfo, Alvin, Kris, Lucia and I) are taking a nature hike together. I really hope this will offer a distraction for Rodolfo. Now that there's only one major event left in the Blue-White competition, Alvin and I are worried that he'll go crazy about winning the competition again. Right now, the Blue and White team are tied, so everything is down to the next major event. I kinda wish you were here to talk to him, Dad. He knows how you, Uncle Roger and Auntie Maureen helped the Blue team win when you were at camp, and he's got his mind set on winning, too. It's been his goal since we got here; to earn his name on the plaque on the wall, the way Uncle Roger did. Kris said that he's got it in his head that he __needs__ to win, to show he's as good as his father or something like that. That's why I'm a little worried he'll do something drastic. Hopefully, I'm just worrying for nothing, and everything will be cool._

_That's pretty much everything worth mentioning out here. They blew the breakfast bugle about two minutes ago, and Rodolfo looks like he's about to attack me with his pillow for holding us up. We'll see you all when we come back home next weekend. Just don't be too concerned if Lucia looks a little pink and blistery. She just tripped during the scavenger hunt and landed in a patch of poison sumac, but she's not as itchy as she was yesterday, so she must be getting better._

_Love from Zack_

_P.S. Lucia wants me to tell you to pet Maya and Wenceslas for her._

When Mark finished reading the letter, he met Maureen's eyes, the two of them knowing they were thinking the same thing. No one could ever forget how much Rodolfo took after his father, but out of all of the surviving Bohemians, they'd known Roger the longest, and were the only ones who remembered him at the age of fifteen. They remembered how impossible Roger had been to reason with at that age, and how the short temper he was known for had been even worse back then. If what Zack had said in his letter was true, and Rodolfo had his mind set on winning the Blue-White competition, there was no doubt that his father's blood would be going into overdrive at this point. It was a universal fact that when the stubborn temperament of a Davis male mixed with a fixed goal, trouble was quite often imminent.


	9. Down to the Wire

On the Friday night before the final event of the Blue-White competition, as the campers were sitting down to their dinner, Kris, Alvin, Rodolfo and Zack selected a table by the window, where they always sat together at mealtimes. Everyone was waiting for the counselors to make the announcement of what event would take place in the morning. The final event had been kept a secret from everyone, and many of the campers had spent most of their free time voicing their personal theories on what that event would be.

"Someone at the fishing activity thought it was going to be a Capture the Flag…" Alvin started to offer a suggestion.

"Nope," Kris cut him off in mid-sentence. "They did that last year. They never use the same event twice in a row. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a surprise." Without another word, she spooned some of her selection from the night's pasta bar into her mouth. "Hmm. Is this Chef Boyardee? Sure tastes like it."

"Yeah, it's not that bad," Zack nodded. "Just not as good as Mom's"

"I hear that," Rodolfo agreed.

"I know exactly what you mean," Kris added. "You haven't lived until you've tried Granny's salmon cakes."

Oh, yeah, I've been meaning to bring that up," Rodolfo remembered. "What's it like up there, anyway?"

"What? You mean Granddad and Granny's place?" Kris glanced over at her friend.

"Well, I'm just wondering, that's all," Rodolfo shrugged. "Apart from coming to camp this year, and the occasional visit to Scarsdale to see Uncle Mark's family, I've never been anywhere outside the city."

"Wait a minute, Rodolfo," Zack augured. "What about that summer Mom and Dad told us about? When they all took that road trip down to Texas, and ended up staying at that hotel where…?"

"That doesn't count. We were babies at the time." Kris looked between the two 'cousins', but before she could ask what they were talking about, the head counselor suddenly called for everyone's attention.

"First of all," he began, "I want to tell everyone that they've done a wonderful job this year. Everybody has gone beyond our expectations. All of you should be very proud of your accomplishments this year.

"Now, I'm sure you're all eager to hear about the Blue-White competition. At this point, both teams are tied evenly, meaning that the team who wins the final event will be the winner of the entire competition this year. In order to keep everyone surprised, and to prevent any possible cheating on either side, the final event has been kept secret. However, we now feel that it's time to reveal to you all what tomorrow's event will be. Immediately, after breakfast tomorrow, we will be having a relay race.

"At exactly 9:20 tomorrow morning, all campers are to report to the starting point at the flagpole, where everyone will be taken to a set location along the route of the relay race, which extends throughout the campground and ends at the docks. Once there, they will wait until the baton is passed over to them. I want you all to remember that the race's route has been clearly marked, and there is a chance some counselors will be monitoring the race, so we will know if anyone tries to take a shortcut.

"Now, tonight, at the evening activity, the listing of each camper's position in the relay race will be posted. Each of the listed locations will be assigned to a member of the Blue team and a member of the White team. It's important for everyone to remember where he or she will be dropped off, because we will not remind you tomorrow. The order of everyone's position in tomorrow's race is completely random, to make everything fair.

"On a final note, be sure to rest well tonight. And good luck to everyone tomorrow morning." When the head counselor returned to the counselors' table, conversation broke out once again.

"What's that supposed to mean, 'making everything fair'?" Alvin wondered.

"They probably are trying to make it so the fastest runners on each team aren't placed together," Zack guessed. "Must think it'll give one team an unfair advantage. Anyway, what's the evening activity tonight?"

"Movie night," Kris announced without much thought. "Heard them talking about showing that National Treasure movie during the rest hour while I was sending Dad and Uncle Justin a postcard."

"National Treasure One or Two?" Rodolfo asked.

"Why? Does it matter?"

"Well, the first one was believable enough to be worth the five dollars for a Saturday matinee ticket. The second one, well, I don't think they really explained why the guy had to come along with the whole Booth diary thing instead of just asking for Ben's help."

"Hey, I don't care which one they show, as long as they dish out the buttered popcorn," Alvin stated. "Movie night without the popcorn is like… Christmas without the tree. It's just wrong."

* * *

On Saturday morning, about five minutes before the start of the relay race, the campers were all boarded into the hay wagons that would drive each camper to their starting position in the race. There were two hay wagons in all, one for each team. When it had been their turn to get on the Blue Team's hay wagon, Rodolfo, Zack, Kris, Alvin and Lucia had all made an effort to sit together, since they would be staggered throughout the route of the relay race. Alvin was going to be the third runner for the Blue Team, while Kris and Lucia were positioned somewhere along the middle. It turned out Rodolfo was going to be running the last leg of the race, preceded by Zack. Ever since finding out it would all be down to him in the end, Rodolfo had grown quiet and brooding, and barely noticed if someone was talking to him. Even Kris was refraining from spouting off some bizarre saying to snap him out of it, but she did send him one of her trademark placid smiles before being dropped off. Before long, only Zack and Rodolfo were left in the hay wagon.

"So, just to let you know," Zack began as the hay wagon drove through the wooded area where they would begin their length of the race, hoping not to set him off. "I'm sure you would have proved yourself to Uncle Roger already. Even if we don't win this competition, he probably knows you did the best you could."

"Zack, you don't get it," Rodolfo shook his head stubbornly. "I can't say I lived up to my father unless I get my name on that plaque on the wall."

"I'm just saying that it's not all about you, all right? I mean, it's like Kris said when we first met, remember? This camp isn't for competition or anything like that. It's supposed to be about teamwork, doing your best, and building character. Even _you_ said that you didn't come here to compete."

"And I'm not," Rodolfo insisted. "I just want to live up to my dad's achievement. Why is that so hard to understand?"

"It's not, Rodolfo," Zack reasoned. "But at the same time, you have to remember that…you may share some traits with Uncle Roger, but...you're not him."

"You_ really_ don't get it," Rodolfo snapped as the hay wagon stopped to drop Zack off. Zack let out a defeated sigh as he got out.

"I'll see you at the finish line, then," he announced with an air of disappointment as the hay cart carried Rodolfo off.

The brown-eyed boy watched his 'cousin' until the hay cart turned the corner and Zack was out of sight, but even then, he couldn't stop thinking about what Zack had said. Zack didn't understand how he felt at all. There was no way he could loose. He needed to win this and get his name up on that wall, like his father had done. He needed to do this to show his father that he was as good as he'd been, and nothing was going to stop him from winning this race.

However, when the hay wagon started pulling up to the spot where he would be waiting for Zack to hand the baton to him, Rodolfo felt the bottom of his stomach drop. The member of the White Team he would be racing against was already waiting there, and the identity of the camper nearly made him sick with nervous panic.

Of all the campers he could be racing against, the counselors had paired him with Charles.

* * *

Zack dashed along the path through the campground woods, between a steep slope and a White Team member who was called Ryan. The two had shared a conversation earlier to pass the time before they had to begin their part of the race, and Zack had brought up how worried he was about Rodolfo and his obstinate determination to win the competition. Ryan had proven to be supportive, telling Zack that his father had a doctrine in psychology, going on to explain that it was apparently a common occurrence for sons to want to mimic their fathers, and since Rodolfo had never known his father, that instinct was probably stronger than usual. As a result, it might be best to just let him get the competition thing out of his system. Unfortunately, the chat had to end there, because the runners with the batons had just appeared, and they had to start running.

Zack and Ryan continued running along the race's route, occasionally avoiding tripping over a fallen branch or rock. As they reached the end of their part of the relay race, Rodolfo and Charles slowly came into view. It was clear to see that they were both getting ready to run the final length, but Zack could also see the look on Rodolfo's face, which let him know that Charles had been taunting him for quite a while. That could only mean one thing. If Rodolfo lost to Charles now, then there would possibly be a repeat of the canoe race. Putting on an extra burst of speed, fueled by nothing more than wanting to avoid that possibility, Zack quickly got close enough to pass the baton over to Rodolfo. In a heartbeat, he was off, with Charles close behind.

"Well, that's that," Ryan noted, dropping down to sit on a nearby log. "Man, I hate running."

"Yeah, me too," Zack agreed, resting his back against a young tree. "I think I'm just going to take a minute to catch my breath before heading back to camp. How about you, Ryan?"

"Oh, you just took the words out of…." Ryan never finished his sentence. The tree Zack had been resting against was nothing more than a young sapling, and couldn't take the sudden weight of a teenage boy. Within moments, the tree had given way, toppling over. With the loss of the tree for support, Zack ended up loosing his balance and began to tumble down the steep slope of the wooded path, crying out as he fell.

* * *

A short distance ahead, Rodolfo was focused on outrunning Charles, who was occasionally shooting him mocking smirks. Clenching his teeth together, Rodolfo forced himself to run faster than he was usually able, not thinking about the painful stitch he'd have afterwards. All that mattered was reaching the finish line before Charles did.

At that moment, Zack's cry rang through the air. Instantly, Rodolfo found himself skidding to a halt, eyes wide in shock. The only time he'd heard Zack shout like that was back in second grade, when he'd fallen off the monkey bars. If Zack was crying out like that now, he might be in a lot of trouble.

"Giving up already, Dolfy?" Charles jeered as he ran past him, laughing as he went. Indecision filling his face, Rodolfo looked between the remaining distance of the race and the direction of Zack's shout.

What should he do know? It sounded like Zack needed help now, but if he didn't continue now, he'd loose the race, the competition, and all hopes of getting his name up on the wall next to his father's. His heart pounding from the conflict, Rodolfo swallowed hard, and looked once again over at Charles, who was now almost out of sight. Seconds later, a hardened, determined expression filled Rodolfo's face as he made his decision. Not giving it another thought, Rodolfo began to run again, but this time, he was running back towards where he'd last seen Zack, dropping the baton as he went.


	10. Doing What Really Matters

Ryan stood staring down the slope where Zack had fallen, momentarily frozen from the shock. Before he could snap out of it, however, he heard someone running over. Glancing up, he found that it was Rodolfo, looking completely fearful.

"Where's Zack?" Rodolfo asked immediately, his voice strained with panicked worry.

"He slipped down the side," Ryan explained, pointing downwards.

"He _what_!?" Rodolfo spun towards the slope and glanced down, eyes wide. About halfway down, he could make out Zack's still form, partially propped up against a thick tree log, which had apparently stopped him from falling further down the slope. "Zack! Can you hear me?" Rodolfo called down. When Zack didn't reply, Rodolfo immediately began scaling down.

"Hey, wait!" Ryan stopped him. "You could slip, too!"

"I don't care!" Rodolfo insisted, continuing down. "I'm not gonna just sit here when Zack could be seriously hurt. Look, if you want to help, run back to camp and get one of the counselors. I'm not a nurse like Cousin Penny, but I know enough to say that if Zack's not answering, it's a bad sign. Now hurry!" Nodding, Ryan turned and ran off in the direction of camp while Rodolfo continued to scale down the slope, being very careful not to slip as well. Once he reached Zack's side, Rodolfo went to work in trying to wake him up again by lightly slapping at his cheeks.

"Come on, Zacky," Rodolfo urged. "Open your eyes, buddy. Snap out of it." After a few harrowing seconds, Zack let out a low groan and opened his eyes.

"Rodolfo?" he blinked in a daze. "What're you…?"

"Zack, listen to me for a minute," Rodolfo interrupted, trying to remember what Penny had said to do if someone had a possible concussion. "What pets do we have back home?"

"Wenceslas, the potbellied pig, and Maya, our cat."

"And what're your sisters' names?"

"Penny and Lucia," Zack spoke quickly before changing the subject. "Rodolfo, what about the race? I thought you…"

"Never mind about that. Just try not to move, okay?"

"Don't think I could if I wanted to," Zack replied before grunting in pain. "My ankle's killing me." Rodolfo glanced down at the ankle in question, which was starting to look slightly puffy. Cautiously, Rodolfo reached out to feel it and was rewarded by Zack's gasp of pain.

"Sorry," Rodolfo apologized, pulling his hand back instantly.

"You think it's broken?" Zack asked through gritted teeth.

"I don't know," Rodolfo admitted. "I'm not Penny, after all. I can't tell a tibia from a fibula. All the same, it might not be a good idea to move it much."

"No problem there. And…." Zack paused for a moment, meeting Rodolfo's eyes. "What about that race? We both know how important winning was for you, but…"

"Zack, I told you to forget about it," Rodolfo reminded. "Yes, it _was_ important. But I'd say you're more important than a dumb competition. Besides, how'd I be able to enjoy winning if you're not there?

"It's always been the two of us, since we were babies, you know? You're not just my 'cousin,' Zack. You're my best friend. What would I do with myself if something happened to you? Getting my name on that wall next to my dad's; it wouldn't mean anything if you weren't around."

"Thanks, Rodolfo," Zack smiled. Seconds later, the smile shifted into a grimace of pain as he moved his hurt ankle.

"Hey, I told you not to move it!" Rodolfo reminded.

"I know," Zack hissed, gritting his teeth again. "But how are we supposed to get up to the path again?"

"Just hang on a bit longer, okay?" Rodolfo sighed, following Zack's eyes up the steep slope they'd come down. "That other kid's gone to get one of the counselors. I'm sure they'll be coming back with help."

* * *

Hours later, Rodolfo was sitting in the waiting room of Moses-Ludington Hospital, with Lucia at his side, neither of them saying a word. Zack had been taken to the emergency room within seconds after arrival at the hospital to have the extent of his injuries evaluated. The fact that he'd been unconscious after his fall had been a matter of concern to the doctors who had admitted him, and they had started treating him almost immediately. So far, however, no one had come out with any news. Because of this, Rodolfo and Lucia could only sit around, waiting for Mark and Emily, who had been contacted about the accident the moment the ambulance had left the camp, to arrive.

With an irritated sigh, Rodolfo tossed the magazine he'd been aimlessly flipping through onto the table nearby. He absolutely hated waiting around like this, and wished that Kris and Alvin had been able to come with him and Lucia. There was no denying that their presence was what he needed now. However, since they were not part of Zack's family, they were not allowed to leave the camp grounds, and had to stay behind.

"Rodolfo?" Lucia's tentative voice pulled him out of his funk. "Zack'll be okay, right?" Instantly, Rodolfo felt his face softening. He'd almost forgotten that Lucia was no doubt just as worried as he was.

"Yeah," Rodolfo forced a smile. "Don't worry about it, Luce. Even if he was hurt bad, Zack won't be going anywhere. He's not finished being your big brother."

It was at that moment that the door opened up. Rodolfo and Lucia looked up to see that one of the doctors was stepping out into the waiting room, and they instantly were on their feet, asking questions all at once.

"Please, one at a time," the doctor instructed kindly. "I was just about to tell you what's going on. Zack's father has just called us from a payphone at a rest stop. He asked me to tell you two that they've run into traffic on the interstate, so it will be a bit longer before they get here. He also said that you should call Penny if you learn anything, since she wants to know how Zack is too, but couldn't get off work.

Anyway, since your parents have been delayed, I think I can be permitted to let you in with Zack now."

"So he's okay?" Lucia asked hopefully.

"Our tests have shown that he won't suffer from any lasting damage. He hasn't broken any bones, but he will need to take it easy with his left ankle for a few weeks, and keep his weight off it. Overall, I'd say he'd be able to leave by tomorrow morning. Although, there might be a chance his parents will want to take him home after this, so he might not be returning to the camp with you two."

"But camp's almost over anyway!" Rodolfo argued. "It's not like he'd be doing cartwheels or anything like that."

"Like I said, it'll be your parent's choice, not mine," the doctor explained. "Now, if you'd like to come with me, I'll take you to Zack's room." Rodolfo and Lucia followed the doctor in silence down the hall to one particular room, where Zack was sitting up in bed, a lunch tray resting on his lap. His injured ankle had been placed in a brace, and was propped up on a spare pillow.

"Hey, guys," Zack smiled immediately upon seeing his visitors. "Are Mom and Dad here yet?"

"No, that doctor said they were stuck in traffic on the interstate," Lucia explained. "Zack, are you okay?"

"My ankle still hurts, but other than that," Zack shrugged. "Besides, they told me that I might be able to leave tomorrow."

"Yeah, but he also said Uncle Mark and Aunt Emily might take you back home," Rodolfo pointed out.

"You don't think they will, do you?" Zack suddenly sounded worried. "I mean, there's just the one week left, and I don't want to miss it."

"But you wouldn't be able to do anything," Lucia stated. "The doctor just told us you need to stay off your ankle."

"So, I won't go on any nature hikes or things like that," Zack exclaimed. "I can still do the arts and craft stuff. Besides, it doesn't matter if I'm home or at camp. Either way, I'll be just sitting around all day. I'd rather do that at camp. At least that way, I'll have people around to spend time with. If I go back home, either Mom or Dad would have to take time off work, because I can't see them being okay with me being left on my own with a bad ankle."

"They could just ask Auntie Maureen to stay with you during the day," Lucia debated.

"I don't want to be stuck indoors with Auntie Maureen all day," Zack complained. "It's not that I don't like her, I'd just prefer being with my friends instead. Besides, if I have to listen to her cow story one more time, I'll go insane."

"Hey, makes sense to us," Rodolfo agreed with a grin. "Question is, will Uncle Mark and Aunt Emily see things that way?"

"I hope so," Zack sighed, glancing down at his lunch tray before carefully pushing it over. "You two can help yourself, you know. I think I had enough."

"You sure?" Lucia asked, fixing her brother with an unsure glance.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Zack insisted, tossing her the unopened bag of chips. "I ate a lot at breakfast this morning."

"Thanks, Zacky," Rodolfo smiled. "Just hold those canned pears for me. Uncle Mark said we should call Penny when we find out how you are. I probably should do that now."

"All right. I'll save you the pears until you get back," Zack agreed as Rodolfo stepped out to make the phone call.

However, halfway down the hall, Rodolfo paused in his journey to the hospital's payphone to glance out a nearby window.

"Sorry about throwing the race today, Dad," Rodolfo spoke as he gazed at the clouds. "I hope you can understand why I did, though. After all, you probably cared about Uncle Mark the same way I care about Zack, right? Helping your best friend is what really matters, isn't it?"


	11. Awards Ceremony

**AN:** Apologies for the short chapter. I'd wanted to post it yesterday, but there weren't enough hours in the day. Next chapter will be the last, so enjoy.

* * *

The mess hall was packed with the multitudes of campers and their dinner plates filled with hot dogs, pizzas, and a great assortment of other foods. In their usual table by the window, Kris and Lucia sat together in silence, waiting for the boys to arrive. It was everyone's last night at camp, and the counselors were getting ready for the end-of-the-year awards ceremony.

As they waited, Kris glanced out of the corner of her eye at where Charles was sitting. She'd only known him for a little while, but she could still tell that the smirk on his face was a smug one, and that he was planning to rub it in to Rodolfo that the Blue Team had lost the competition that year. She seriously hoped that he wouldn't have the chance to do so.

"You have room here?" Rodolfo's voice asked, surprising Kris and Lucia. They hadn't even heard him walking up with Alvin. Without a word, Lucia scooted over, allowing Rodolfo and Alvin to help Zack sit down next to his sister, making sure nothing bumped against the brace wrapped around his ankle. The two boys had worked together to help Zack get to dinner, by acting as a pair of human crutches, to keep Zack from putting any weight on his bad ankle. Mark and Emily had agreed that Zack could stay at camp for the remainder of the week, on the condition that Rodolfo personally 'escorted' Zack to each of the sit-down activities, and that they would be picking them all up the day after the awards ceremony instead of taking the bus ride home.

Just as Rodolfo and Alvin were sitting down, the head counselor suddenly called for everyone's attention. The awards ceremony was now beginning. The five kids all listened without much interest for a while. The first half of the awards ceremony, once all the 'good jobs for all the hard work' were delivered, was quite dull. It was filled with pointless awards, such as 'cleanest cabin' and 'neatest trunk.' After that, they progressed to some of the awards that were named after some people who had came to camp a long time ago, among others. After what seemed like ages, they came to the part that Rodolfo had been dreading.

"All of you have done wonderfully this year in the Blue-White Competition," the head counselor smiled at the entire mess hall. "Everyone should be proud of how hard they've worked this year. I can't remember the last time it's been as close as it has came this year. I trust everyone will therefore extend their congratulations to the White Team for their job well done."

"You gonna be okay, Rodolfo?" Alvin asked, noticing that Charles was sending the brown-eyed boy a smug look.

"Yeah," Rodolfo shrugged, sounding unemotional about the news. "Of course I am. No big deal, right?" Regardless of Rodolfo insisting he didn't care about the White Team winning, everyone still reached out to place supportive hands on their friend's arm.

Shortly afterwards, the ceremony began to come to an end, but it turned out that the head counselor had one final award to give out.

"As always," the head counselor spoke, "I have saved the award of the Adirondack Eagle for last. This award is the highest honor everyone can receive at camp, since you can't just try to win an Adirondack Eagle. It is given to the select few campers who embody a pure sense of wonder and fun and the core values by which we stand: responsibility, creativity, spirit, growing, independence, effort, courage, sharing, leadership, and cooperation.

"Three campers from each age division will receive an Adirondack Eagle in Bronze, Silver, or Gold. I shall announce the names of each camper who have earned this high award, starting from the Junior age division."

The Boho Kids only half listened as the names were called off, automatically applauding for each camper, until their age division was reached, and….

"Rodolfo Davis." It took a moment for Rodolfo's mind to process the fact that his name had just been called out. Even when it did, he could only sit at his table, staring in complete shock at the counselors' table. Did he just hear that right? Did they seriously just announce that _he'd_ won one of those Adirondack Eagles?

"Rodolfo, come on!" Zack cried, pushing him lightly. "Wake up and get going!" With the push, Rodolfo finally managed to regain control of his legs, and slowly progressed up to the counselors' table, nearly in a trance. It was John, the counselor who'd recognized him as Roger's son on the first day of camp, who presented him the award.

"Well done, Rodolfo," John congratulated the young boy with a warm smile.

"I…I don't understand," Rodolfo whispered. "H…how did I…?"

"We were all told about what you did after Zack's accident during the rely race," John explained. "Moments after Charles Miller reached the finishing line, Ryan Prichard came running up and told the first counselor he found about Zack's accident. He told us all how you threw the race when you realized your friend was in trouble, and immediately took charge, telling him to get help before going down to look after Zack until it came. The other counselors and I all agreed that in doing so, you showed a great amount of responsibility and leadership, among other things. And that's not mentioning the fact that you've obviously grown as well. When you first came here, winning the Blue-White Competition seemed to be all that you cared about. But you proved that you were able to put the safety of others ahead of what you wanted. So, from what I've seen, you've undoubtedly exhibited some of the character traits that the Adirondack Eagle stands for." For another brief moment, Rodolfo couldn't find the energy to speak.

"Does… does this mean," he began, not daring to believe it quite yet. "My name's going to go up on the wall, like my father's?"

"That's exactly what it means," John confirmed, patting Rodolfo's shoulder. "I hope you'll forgive me if you're tired of hearing this, Rodolfo, but… you truly are your father's son." Rodolfo gave a shaky smile, still unable to get past the shock of receiving what had been described as the highest award at the camp. As he slowly made his way back to his friends, he managed to catch a brief glimpse of Charles looking scandalized, and Ryan, Tony and Kwan all waving or giving him a thumbs-up. His shock of achieving the goal he'd planned on reaching when he first came to camp, however, didn't disappear until arrival at his table, when Zack, with the help of Alvin and Kris, managed to get up on his feet, in order to give his best friend and 'cousin' a hug that would have been worthy of their fathers.


	12. Summer's End

Mark stepped away from the van that had been parked on the campgrounds, looking around Adirondack Camp silently. From this spot, he had a good view of the cabins and the lake, as well as the multitude of children either searching for their friends to say goodbye or just waiting to get on the busses that would take them back home. It was so strange setting foot here again after twenty-six years, but in spite of how much time had passed, everything looked exactly the same as he'd remembered it. Without a word, he walked through the camp until he reached one particular tree near the basketball court. Hesitating for only a moment, he laid a hand against the tree trunk. As he did so, he could almost see images from the past replaying in front of him, triggered by the memories tied to this place.

**Flashback**

"You won't be able to!" fifteen-year-old Roger shot out in a tone that was usually adopted when someone was not talking sense.

"I will so," Maureen fired back confidently, beaming. "Just watch me."

"Maureen, you live in Hicksville," Roger argued. "Do you know how far Scarsdale is from there? There's no _way _you're going to be able to walk five thousand miles."

"It's not five thousand miles from Hicksville to Scarsdale," Maureen rolled her eyes.

"Who cares?! I'm telling you, you won't be able to make it. Mark, will you put down that da-n camera and back me up here?"

"Roger, it sounds as if you don't _want _Maureen to come visit us after camp's over," Mark pointed out, lowering his camera, a Kodak XL 340, as he took a seat next to his best friend beneath the tree next to the campground's basketball court.

"I'm not saying that," Roger scowled, folding his arms and glaring in the opposite direction. "I just don't want her to try and walk that whole way, because she'll probably have to go along the highway, and then she'll get run over, or kidnapped, or picked up by the cops, or…."

"If I didn't know any better," Maureen grinned deviously, "I'd think you were _concerned_ about me."

"No chance," Roger scowled even more. "I just know that if you're picked up by the cops trying to walk to Scarsdale to see us, Mark and I will get in trouble for encouraging you to do it."

"You're not fooling anyone, Davis. I know you're really worried about me," Maureen teased as she ruffled his hair.

"Hey!" Roger cried, slapping her hand away. "I told you _never _to touch the hair!" Maureen shook her head and turned to Mark while Roger started attempting to 'fix' his hair from the ruffling.

"You want to see me come and visit though, don't you Marky?" she crooned.

"Yeah, of course," Mark replied without hesitation. "But…Roger does have a point. It _is _a little too far to walk, and who knows how many things might happen to you on the way?"

"If you're that worried about it, I'll just take the bus or something, even though it wouldn't be half as exciting," Maureen relented. "But I'm gonna come see you two, no matter what I have to do. Just because camp's over tomorrow, that doesn't mean you've gotten rid of me." Giving the boys one last Cheshire cat grin, Maureen turned and headed off to her cabin.

"Oh, we're _not_ getting rid of her?" Roger frowned. "Sh-t, I was looking forward to how quiet things would be without her around."

"Quit the lying bullsh-t, Rog," Mark sighed. "You're gonna miss her, too."

"No chance," Roger insisted, starting to sulk. Instead of arguing, Mark shook his head and started watching Roger's face, just waiting. Sure enough, after a few seconds, the corners of his mouth started to twitch before immediately growing into a full-blown smile, accompanied by a short burst of laughter. Sometimes, Mark felt that Roger was just too predictable. He never could keep up the indifferent attitude for very long.

Feeling the urge to capture Roger's smile on film, Mark lifted up his camera again, only to have Roger playfully cover the lens cap with his hand.

"Aw, come on, Mark," he laughed. "You don't have to drag that thing out every second."

"I do when it involves your best friend smiling," Mark quipped. "Especially since that best friend tries to act tough all the time. Who knows when you're gonna crack a smile again?"

"Shut up," Roger, pushing aside the tough guy act aside for a moment, replied with a one-armed brotherly hug. "You're acting tomorrow's the end of the world or something, and I won't have the chance to smile again." Roger's smile shifted into a mischievous smirk. "Hate to break it to you, Cohen, but I'm not going anywhere. You're stuck with me 'til you're a wrinkled old fart."

**End Flashback**

Mark felt his fists clench at the old memory, doing his best to hold back his tears. Being back here again reminded him of his and Roger's childhood belief that things would never change, and nothing could ever separate or harm them. He sometimes wished that their teenaged selves could have known how the harsh reality of real life could change that completely.

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt someone take hold of his hand, giving it a gentle, sympathetic squeeze. Knowing who it was, Mark tightened his grip on her hand before glancing wearily back at Emily.

"You're missing him, aren't you?" she asked softly.

"He once said, in this very spot, that he wasn't going anywhere," Mark remembered. "When we were kids here, we believed that we had all the time in the world. Back then, I only bothered filming him on holidays, or his birthday. Things like that. I never really started filming the everyday stuff until _after_ the diagnosis, and by then… there were so many moments that were gone forever, and the only thing I have left is just the memories. But sometimes, I have trouble remembering them, too."

"I know how you feel," Emily replied, moving closer to him. "When my brother died, I didn't have as many pictures of him as I would have wanted. And…I miss him too, Mark. I really do."

For a time, the two stood by the tree, not saying anything and relying solely on their proximity for comfort, until a cheerful voice broke the moment.

"Mom! Dad!" Turning, Mark and Emily saw Lucia racing towards them. Close behind her was Rodolfo and Alvin, supporting Zack as he hobbled along with his injured ankle, and a young fifteen-year-old girl with black hair that neither of them recognized.

"Hello, Lucia," Emily greeted their daughter with a hug. "Did you have a good time at camp?"

"The best!" Lucia announced with a large smile before moving on to hug her father as well.

"Hi, Uncle Mark, Aunt Emily," Rodolfo greeted before gesturing to the girl who was standing nearby. "This is Kris, the girl we told you about in the letters."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. 'n Mrs. Cohen," Kris smiled placidly.

"Oh, so _this _is the one who found five four leaf clovers during your scavenger hunt," Mark surmised.

Yeah, she sure is," Zack confirmed. "Dad, we were actually wondering. Since Kris lives in the city, too, we were hoping it would be okay if she gets a ride home with us."

"Well," Mark glanced at Kris, pretending to think. "I don't see a problem with that. Of course she can come with us."

A short time later, the family had assembled at the van, so Zack could sit down and keep his weight off his ankle. This gave the kids a chance to give a recount of their time at camp while Alvin, Rodolfo and Kris helped pack their duffel bags into the back of the van. During the process, Mark paused while picking up a guitar case, his brow furrowing from the memories it brought back.

"Oh, yeah," Zack spoke up when he glanced over. "That's Kris'. She plays guitar, just like Uncle Roger did."

"I see," Mark nodded numbly, carefully storing it into the van. Once again, he remembered his own experience at camp, and how Roger had played his guitar nonstop during the bus ride back home. Heaving a heavy sigh, Mark was unable to stop himself from stepping away from his family to be alone with his thoughts. He finally came to a stop on the docks, and stared aimlessly out at the water for a very long time. It was a while before Mark realized Rodolfo had joined him, but even when he did, neither of them said anything for a good two minutes longer. It was Rodolfo who broke the silence first.

"Uncle Mark, there were two counselors here, John and Greg. They said they went to camp with you and Dad."

"John and Greg, huh?" Mark nodded in remembrance. "We always _thought_ that they'd try to be counselors here."

"They…wanted me to give you this," Rodolfo continued, pulling out a manila envelope. Inside, there was a photograph of him and Roger when they were at camp. It was pretty clear that John and Greg had taken the picture of the 1981 campers, and had blown up the section that contained Mark and Roger. The filmmaker instantly felt sincere gratitude towards John and Greg. As far as he was concerned, he could never have too many pictures of Roger from those carefree days, before gritty reality had brought that era to a screeching halt.

Tucking the manila folder under his arm, Mark spared a glance at Rodolfo, taking in how, while his eyes and nose had undoubtedly came from Mimi, he was almost a mirror image of Roger. It was this observation that gave him the strength to speak again.

"Zack told me about how you threw the relay race to go back and help him after his fall," Mark spoke, resting a hand on Rodolfo's shoulder. "Even without that award you ended up winning because of it, your father would have been proud of what you did, putting your friend's safety before your own personal goals."

"You think so?" Rodolfo glanced up at his 'uncle'.

"I don't even have a doubt about it. He was my best friend, after all. In fact…. he would have done exactly the same thing in that situation."

At Mark's words, a smile bloomed on Rodolfo's face. _Roger's smile_, Mark couldn't help himself from thinking. This time, however, the instant flood of memories that penetrated his mind weren't accompanied by pain. Roger, his best friend and brother, was still gone forever, but it had never been clearer then it was now that the best part of Roger still lived. Not just in the countless memories, but in Rodolfo as well.


End file.
